newsbrief

37 perennial canals selected for annual desiltationMULTAN (APP): The Multan canal division has selected 37 perennial canals for annual desiltation during closure period 2015-16 while over Rs 16 million will be spent on the project. Talking to APP here on Saturday, XEN Multan canal division, Abdul Wahid said that 37 canals were selected for annual desiltation. He said the work on these canals would be started from January 11 while it would be completed by January 28 during the closure period fixed for perennial canals. He said that the water would be released into the canals from end of current month after the completion of closure period. He informed that Rs 16.810 million would be spent on the desiltation of 37 canals while 9,744,928 cubic feet silt would be removed. He said that the total length of the canals was 306 miles.He said that the tenders of 10 canals have been opened while the tenders of remaining canals would be opened upcoming week while government contractors would completed the desiltation work.He said that the purpose of the annual desiltation was to provide water to tail-end growers properly and strengthening the banks of the canals.

CPEC to bring prosperity in country: AhsanISLAMABAD (APP): Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal has said that the massive foreign investment under the CPEC would bring prosperity in the country. Talking to a private news channel, he said the government was ensuring conducive economic environment in the country, which was vital for sustained foreign investment. The minister said all the reservations of Balochistan’s parliamentary parties regarding the western route of CPEC had been removed and the provincial government had also assured its full support for the completion of the project. Ahsan Iqbal said the CPEC would link the backward areas of Balochistan with the rest of the country and bring prosperity there.

Development projects were being executed in the province on priority, he added.He said the government was determined to accomplish the project as it was a game changer for the country and the region.Around $36 billion out of total $46 billion would be invested in the energy sector by private companies of China, he added. Replying to a question, he said not a single penny of federal government was being spent on the Orange Line Train project in Punjab.

China domain ‘.cn’ becomes world’s largestBEIJING (INP): China’s country code domain “.cn” is now the world’s most commonly used. It had 16.36 million users by the end of last year, topping Germany’s “.de,” according to data released on Friday by the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), which manages the domain. The .cn domain is also world leading in domain resolution service, security and the ratio of benign uses, said CNNIC head Li Xiaodong. As China began to require real-name registration in 2009, the .cn domain is able to protect users’ interests and reduce online theft, phishing and fraud, Li said. The domain is not only widely used by Chinese institutions and companies but also by overseas institutions and multinationals, according to the CNNIC.It is used by all central and provincial governments in China and most telecom companies and commercial banks. Multinationals including Apple Inc., Microsoft, Samsung and Amazon own .cn domain names.

LCCI six-day ‘export management course’ concludesLAHORE (APP): A six-day training programme of the Lahore Chammber and Commerce and Industry (LCCI) ‘ Certificate in Export Management’ concluded here on Saturday. The programme provided comprehensive training modules to over 100 people from different walks of life. The basic objective of the LCCI initiative was to equip young entrepreneurs and potential export managers with state-of-the-art exporting skills. The experts addressed different sessions of the LCCI Export Management Programme. Presentations focused on key factors belonging to exports were major part of the training. They also guided the participants on how to access foreign markets, how to find buyers for their products. The closing ceremony was held under the auspices of LCCI President Sheikh Muhammad Arshad, Senior Vice President Almas Hyder and Vice President Nasir Saeed while Executive Committee Members were also present.Speaking on the occasion, LCCI President Sheikh Muhammad Arshad, Senior Vice President Almas Hyder and Vice President Nasir Saeed said the LCCI Certificate in Export Management programme had a caliber of understanding the depth of a foreign exchange and international trade laws.He said Pakistan exports did not match with huge potential, therefore, young entrepreneurs had to come forward and demonstrate their abilities to give a jumpstart to the exports.The LCCI President said that Lahore Chamber felt the need of introducing this course keeping in view the ongoing stagnation in total exports of Pakistan.The LCCI office-bearers said in past, LCCI had been offering such courses on regular basis and urged the participants to work under a well-thought export strategy based on products marketing.They said value addition was one of the best tools to earn huge foreign exchange and this target could be achieved through investment in technology, skill enhancement and research & development.The LCCI office-bearers urged the young entrepreneurs to focus on trade with the regional countries that was more efficient in terms of cost and logistics.They said that Pakistan occupies a strategic location and has ability to act as a major player in transforming the region into a trade and manufacturing hub.They said the promotion of regional trade also offered promising benefits to the industry as it would enable it to source raw materials from the region that would ultimately reduce cost of production and create opportunities to improve economy of scales by having easy access to neighbouring markets on the other hand.Sheikh Arshad said, “Pakisdan has lost momentum but it has ability to bounce back as it has over 50 per cent of young population, 12 per cent of known global natural resources, and all prerequisites to become a developed nation.”He also stressed the need for trust building between employers & employees and business entities. He also urged the Pakistan businessmen to highlight soft image of the country to get their due share in the international market.He said coordinators of the program Furqan Hanif, Furqan Munir and Basharat Khan deserve appreciation for their untiring efforts. While, the participants indicated that the programme’s greatest impact had been on their know-how and capacity so they could become instrumental in the enhancement of the Pakistan’s exports.

20-member business delegation to visit Uganda LAHORE (NNI): A 20-member Pakistani business delegation will visit Kampala, Uganda. This was disclosed by the secretary General PTBA and trip organizer Aslam Bhatti while briefing media. He further stated that the aim of this trip is to search an alternative market for Pakistani made products to introduce in African market. The trip invitation was extended by the government of the republic of Uganda. Honorary counsel General of Uganda will also go with Pakistani delegation. Pakistani delegation will visit Ugandan national Chamber, Board of investment, Ugandan manufacturer association, Ugandan import, Export Bureau and other trade bodies. B2B meetings, factories and showroom visits are also part of tour. Pakistani delegation will also have interaction with local Pakistani Community living and doing business in Uganda. Bhatti said that Uganda is a useful business destination for Pakistanis as currency is very cheap than Pakistan, labour and land is also cheep and Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Sudan, Congo and Burundi has free trade agreements catering 300 million population for Pakistani products market available.